Festival planning meeting:

Monday August 3rd, 6.30pm

@ Broadwater Farm Community Centre, 1 Adams Rd, N17 All welcome!

Invitation to all local community groups Once again the Lordship Rec Users Forum is organising its annual community festival and we’re inviting you and your members to get involved! Last year 3,000 people attended and participated (see below for a report). The festival is a key part of the ongoing efforts to showcase the potential of the park, encourage greater usage, continue to develop community-led partnership working, and to pursue the regeneration of Tottenham’s largest green open space.

The Users Forum is a partnership of the Friends of Lordship Rec, Haringey Parks Dept, local residents associations, Back To Earth projects, environmental and conservation groups, Broadwater Farm Community Centre, Neighbourhood Management officers, and other interested organisations.For the last 6 years we have been working in partnership to restore and regenerate Tottenham’s largest but most neglected public green space so that it can become once again a District Park that Haringey can be proud of. Improvements already achieved include new active play areas, new paths, on-site staffing, and restoration of the lake and woodland areas. The children’s playground is currently being replaced and refurbished.

Last year Haringey Council successfully bid to the Lottery Fund for £4m to be earmarked to carry out major works including restoration of the River Moselle and the historic Model Traffic Area, development of an environmental centre and city farm, and overhaul of the general infrastructure (eg paths, entrances and furniture). That funding will be released following certain conditions being fulfilled including detailed designs and match funding. We are particularly pleased that, in a recent ‘plebescite’ run by the Mayor of London, Lordship Rec gained the most votes of any North London park and hence received an additional £400,000 funding. We thank everyone who helped publicise it or who voted!

The Council will be lodging a ‘Phase Two’ application in September 2009 to the Heritage Lottery Fund which will hopefully secure the funding sought. If so, the regeneration works will be implemented during 2010 and 2011.

As public discussion is still ongoing on the bid and all the improvement plans, and the Heritage Lottery Fund will be considering the final application to release the grant, it is vital that we all work together to showcase our willingness to support the future of the Rec.

We are inviting everyone who supports this restoration effort to help us organise our community festival this coming September. We are therefore writing to you to canvas your support and to ascertain what form your support could take.

We invite you to:

Take up the opportunity for a stall to promote your community organisation (with info, bric-a-brac, or an interactive theme – or whatever). If so please contact: felix_waterhouse@hotmail.com

Offer to organise, or help organise an activity at the event

Pledge funding or resources (if you have any!) for the event infrastructure or activities

Offer to help with publicity

Attend the next organising meeting on Monday 3rd August

Please let us know as soon as possible what you or your organisation may be able to contribute. Please also pass this on to any others who may be interested.